Why do Cleveland fans mourn Ohio State loss?

I guess I’m sort of an aberration in Cleveland. I’m not an Ohio State fan. There, I said it. I’m ready to be ostracized.

This love of OSU football confounds me, though. I just don’t get the adoration of a team that is not located in Cleveland, unless you have direct ties to the school. This isn’t like people in Kentucky rooting for the the Cincinnati Bengals; their choices are limited.

via: Buckeyeempire.com

I’m from Cleveland, not Columbus. I did not attend Ohio State, and I have no family members who are connected to OSU.

I root for Cleveland teams, the Browns, the Cavaliers and even Cleveland State’s basketball team (admittedly, I gave up on the Indians years ago). After all, Cleveland has been my home for nearly half a century. As frightening as it may sound to some people, I’m a Clevelander through and through.

So, when native Clevelanders, who do not live in Columbus or have any connection to OSU, become distraught over a Buckeye loss, even one that costs OSU a shot at a national title, I simply don’t get it. The day after Ohio State lost for the first time in two years, the emotional wreckage it caused in and around Cleveland was obvious.

Laments of yet another heartbreaking “Cleveland” loss littered my social media pages. It was as if life was ending, because a college football team, two hours south of Cleveland, lost a football game.